Aerial navigator.



PA'TENTED JULY 23,1907.

1?. M. MAHAN.

, AERIAL NAVIGATOR.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 21. 1906.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

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PATEITTED JULY 2%, 190'].

F. MIMAHAN.

V AERIAL NAVIGATOR. APPLIUATION FILED AUG. 21, 1905.

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wz'ifieas ea: rm/fmmam. fl y/M mm FRANK MAIIAN, OF GHICAGQ ILLINOIS.

AERIAL NAVIGATOR.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 23,1907".

Application tied-August 21,1905. are No. 276,013.

To all whom it may Concern:

Be it'known that I, FRANK M. MAIIAN, acitizen of the United Statcs,residing in Chicago, in.the county of Cook and State of Illinois, haveinvented a new and useful Improvement in Aerial Navigators, of which thefollowing is a specification.

, This invention relates to an improvement in aerial "is to prevent anyquick falling of the apparatus consequent upon the dis-arrangement orbreaking of the propolling apparatus, the buoyant vessel insuring a slowand gradual descent.

My invention also employs as the propelling means, a pair of wingsjoined to the central portion of the buoyant vessel and vibrated by asuitable motor carried in the cage of the navigator. shaped as near asmay be like the wings of a bird,

These wings are preferably and they are given lifting and propellingmovements .resembling those of the birds wing. .They also resemble abirds wings in that, they are adapted to permit;

the passage of air freely through them when the motion is upward, and toprevent such passage of air when the navigator is soaring or movingdown. This feature of tllQiIlVOIlliUIl consists in providing the wingswith air.

openings through them, guarded by valves'which automaticallyopen whenthe movement is upward and close when it is horizontal or downward. Thebuoyant vessel forming the body ofthe' navigator is given its greatestdiameter at its longitudinal center, anddimiriishcs from the centertoward each end, and the basket carrying the motor and operator issupported immediately below the center of the body, the-constructionbeing such that all the lines of the support converge at the center ofthe basket, where the motor is located, thus establishing an equilibriumbetween the two ends of the navigator. 'This'equilibriuiiris maintainedat all times, notwithstanding the changes in the position of-theoperator. The body is also broader at thetop than at the bottom, so thatits tend eney to rock sidewise is reduced to a minimum. Said body isfurther provided at its forward endwith a guidv I. i mg device .whichmaybe turnedin any direction desired so as to direct the navigatorupward, downward or laterally, It is-also provided with a rud'der at therear end adapted to assist in guiding it.

These and other features of the invention are fully set forth in thedescription given below, and illustrated in the accompanying drawing.

In said drawing Figure 1 is a sideelevation of the invention. Fig. 2 isa transverse section. Fig. 3 ilhis the wings.

the forward guiding device. Fig. 7 'is a vertical section 1 of therudder. Fig. 8 is a section on line 8-8 of Fig. 7, and Fig. 9 is adetail ofthe rudder controlling mech-' anism. Y I I I In said drawing-10 represents the buoyant vessel whichv forms the body of the navigator.It is a closed gas holding vessel, preferably of the shape shown, thatis of a large diameter at the vertical center and tapered toward eachend, and also larger at the' top than at the bottom. It is formed of anysuitable material adapted to hold the gas, and is provided withdistending ribs 11 by which it is enabledto retain its shape,notwithstanding the atmospheric pressure upon it when in motion, and, asalrcadystated, it is charged with such an amount ol' gas as will enableit to sustain about 95 per cent of the total weight of the apparatus andits lead, thus overcoming the greater portion of the gravity so that thewings are called upon to supply only a slight amount of lifting power toenable the vessel to float. The cage or basket 12 is supported from thecenter of the body 10 by strips 13, of which there are two at each side.In the basket is a motor 14 driving the shaft 15, carrying at itsends-sprocket wheels 16, and actuating the chain 1.7 running oversprockets 18, on stud shafts 19 secured to the side of the body. Thecrank wheels 18 are connected by pitman 2O to the base pieces 21 ofThese base pieces are attached to the body by pivots 22 having bearings23 at each end, the bear ings being secured to the body near its top. Bythis mechanism I am enabled to convert the rotary motion of the motorand give the wings the lifting and propelling movements desired; but itwill be understood that I do not wish to be limited to this type ofmechanism, asany other suitable transmitting mechanism may be employedin its stead.

The wings consist of the bases 2]., and of a main portion attachedthereto. This main portion is given considerable area and is made aslight as possible. In the construction which I preterit consistsofhickory ribs 24, and a cover, preferably upon both sides such ribs, ofrubber or equivalent cloth 25. The ribs are all hinged to the bases 21,as shown at 26, and they are employed in such number as may bedesirable. I 1

in the cloth to which the stripsjare applied, are open- 'ings 28, andpreferably at theunder side of the aluminiuni strip, I attach. flat orcheck valves 29 adapted to close said openings when the air is notmoving through them.. The strips 27 are preferably secured to the clothatthe top of the wings as illustrated, and the cloth at the bottom isprovided-with openings 30 registering with they openings 28. The wingsare also provided with distending means consisting. of the toggles 31and 32 and their connecting strip 33.

the toggles are extended, as in Fig. 2%, the wing is fullyWhendistended, and it may be collapsed by forcing thestrip 33 toward thebase 21 so as to shorten the toggles. The

outer ends of the toggles are secured to the outer ribs 24, as will beunderstood, and a locking button is shown at 34 adapted to hold thedistending devices in 'theiropen position.

At the forward end the navigator is provided with a guiding device 35',preferably cone'shaped, as illus- 'trated. It is supported on the end oia bar 36, pivoted at 37 in a slotted rocking bar 38 supported in thearms 39 projecting forwardly from the ring 40 at the forward end oi thebody 10. The bar 36 is connected by a cord 41 to the basket and the cordpasses over the sheave 42 sq-that by pulling upon said cord, the guide35 may be raised, the slotted bar 38 then rocking on its pivots. Tolower the guiding device, another cord 43 attached to its under side andextending to the basket is up eratedQ Another cord 44 is attached to theinner end of the bar 36,- and by pulling upon one end oi'it the guide isinoved laterally in one direction and by. V pulling upon the other endof it, theguido is turned.

and therudder may also be deflected to any angle desired relative to theaxial'line of the body, rocking in so doing, upon the supporting pin 46.The rod. 49

may be rocked by the lever 59, and adjusted longitudinally by the-lever51. Q

The operation of the navigator is as follows: Suppos ing the body tob'e'charged with sufficient gas, so that its buoyancy equals 95 percent'oi the weight of the apparatus and its load, and that' thewings,are distended and motion given to them, the navigator will begin tomove, the wings supplying any deficiencyin the-buoyancy oi the body,necessary to overcome the gravity, and if the guiding devicesareadjusted so as to cause the upward movement, the navigator will riseto any height desired. During the upward movementsfof the wings, thevalves open so that the air passes downfreely through. them and offers,no resistance to the upward movement, and they close during thedownward movement thereof and whenever the upward movement ceases. Whenthe vessel has reached the desired height, the guiding devices may beadjusted for horizontalmovement, and the wing valves then close becausethe downward currents of air through them will have ceased and the wingsefficiency as supporting means is thereby increased because they areadapted to hold-the air beneath them.v

It will be-noticed that thewingsare'somewhat concave idcross-scction,and when the valves close, as stated,

they are adapted to retain a considerable body oiair and the increasedbuoyancydue to this continues-so long as the navigator moveshorizontally or down- Wardlyf While the construction I have showiris thebest new:

known to me, it ,will be nnderstood that I do not wish to be limited tomore details otconstruction nor to the L materials described forthevarious parts.

I claim:

1. An ueriul navigator having a buoyant body, acanv suspended therefrom,propelling and lifting wings hinged to the sirles of-the body,"a1 motorin the car having a cross shaft extending under the body, andconnections between the ends of the shaft and the wings, to operate thelatter.

2. An serial navigator having a pnoyuntbody, -a car suspended therefromwings hinged to the sides of the body,

studshaftssecured to the sidebf the body and havingcranks connected tothe wings, a motor carried'by the car and having a cross shaft under thesaid body, and gearing between theeross shaft and the stud shafts.

3. In an aerial navigator, a wing having, ribs, covers on both the upperand lower sides of the'ribs, said covers having openings therethrongh,and valves for-.the openings in the upper cover, said valves beinglocated'in the space between the covers. I

4. 1m an aerial navigator,- a wing having ribs, a flexible cover overthe ribs, and toggles connected to the ,outer ribs and extending acrossthe wings-to expand or contract the some. i

FRANK M. MAIIAN. Witnesses 11. M, Mimn'ru W LLIAni A. GEIGER.

